Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working

Supported by: Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 2

FOREWORD BY BRC FOREWORD BY TIMEWISE

This report highlights the need for retailers to conduct a rigorous Flexibility in working hours is one of the most important reasons assessment of how they can unblock progression for their cited for choosing to work in retail. frontline talent, through greater flexible working opportunities in managerial roles. Given the industry’s vast workforce, its unique However, the lack of part time opportunities in retail ability to reach across the generations, and its extensive use of management means that employees often become trapped on flexible working arrangements for frontline staff, it is perhaps the shop floor by their flexibility, unable to progress their surprising that this approach has been overlooked until now. or better utilise their skills.

It is a pleasure then to commend this employer’s guide. It adds It’s a familiar story to Timewise. For the last twelve years we to our understanding by bringing together hard evidence and have been working with some of the UK’s leading companies to reliable information, as well as offering practical guidance for help them attract and maximise the talent and skills of people retailers wanting to take action. An assessment invaluable to who need to work either part time or flexibly. In this report, we anyone looking to improve productivity and offer their employees turn our attention to the retail sector. In 2015, the UK Futures attractive, accessible and well remunerated . Programme supported us to pilot a new approach to flexible design in retail, and we worked with Pets at Home to re-design Timewise has piloted flexible working in retail management store management roles to be available on a part time and roles and demonstrates how it can prove an effective means to flexible basis. improving talent retention and progression. It is for other retailers to now consider and follow. Our aim was to make these jobs better jobs, for those who need flexibility in their working lives. And to enable Pets at Home to Our own Retail 2020 research this year recognised that moving make better use of its talent. up whilst maintaining flexibility is a vital part of what will make the retail industry a great, more productive place to work in the This guide summarises what we have learnt. We hope it will coming years. This assessment of how to match the needs of the inspire retailers to explore flexible job design further, as part employer and employee leaves us better placed to respond to of future talent strategies. And we look forward to continuing both current trends and those that will undoubtedly emerge in to explore this approach with retailers, whether individually or the future. collectively, to enhance pay, productivity and the customer offer.

Helen Dickinson Emma Stewart Chief Executive of the BRC Joint CEO, Timewise Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 3

BACKGROUND: THE SOLUTION THE TALENT PROPOSED IN BLOCK IN RETAIL THIS GUIDE

The retail industry is the largest private sector employer in the The Timewise approach to retention and career development has UK, employing three million people. However, the industry has the potential to unlock the talent and productivity of thousands low productivity, and a higher incidence of low pay than any of retail workers. Supported by the UK Futures programme, other UK industry.1 The financial pressures on the sector are we have piloted the redesign of retail management roles on intense: while the National Living and the a flexible and part time basis. This report is the product of an levy challenge costs, the growth of automation and online innovative project run by Timewise and Pets at Home plc, the challenge the top line. UK’s leading pets supplies retailer, with more than 430 stores and 8,000 employees. In these circumstances, the need to retain and progress talented people is paramount. Retailers need the productivity and The first part of this report examines the business case for customer service that come from engaged staff working at their retaining and progressing talent, particularly female talent, skill level. However, much talent is wasted because retail staff through introducing flexible working into retail management who need to work flexibly or part time are trapped in junior roles: roles. We then detail the Pets at Home case study, and conclude they cannot take their flexibility with them from frontline roles to by offering practical guidance on a five-stage change process for store management. retailers who want to take action.

Contents

Summary and recommendations 4 The business case: how flexible working helps to retain and progress talent 5 Myths about the retail workforce 7 The Timewise model for change 8 Case study: Pets at Home 9 The change process – achieving flexibility in retail 11 Step 1: Your business case 12 Step 2: Your current capacity to drive change 13 Step 3: Which job design options do you want to encourage? 14 Step 4: Setting up a pilot – and measuring its impact 15 Step 5: How to make the changes and maximise the benefits 16 Conclusion 17 References and Resources 17 Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 4

SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Timewise, supported by the UK Futures programme and working The Pets at Home pilot alongside Pets at Home plc, has piloted the redesign of retail Pets at Home is the UK’s largest pets retailer, employing management roles on a flexible and part time basis. The aim 8,000 store-based colleagues of whom 65% are women. was to find out if greater access to flexible working in managerial The business suffers from high attrition rates for women. roles could unblock the retail talent pipeline from frontline roles, Research amongst employees found that the ratio of men and address diversity issues. The project also aimed to identify moving off the shop floor into assistant manager roles was a process for implementing wider access to flexible working, for double that of women, and that the lack of flexibility in other retailers to follow. management roles was a major contributing factor. Background Through data mapping, surveys and listening groups, and The retail industry is the largest private sector employer analysis of operational practices, Timewise helped Pets at in the UK, but currently faces acute challenges including Home to identify the challenges and opportunities within the the National , the apprenticeship levy, and the business. The board made a commitment to job redesign growth of online sales. In these circumstances, the need to for managerial roles, and set up a steering group to run the retain and progress talented people is paramount. Diversity change process. at managerial levels is also important, in order to mirror The job redesign process identified job-share partnerships customer demographics. and a four-day-week as viable options, and these were made 1.5 million people currently work in low-paid roles in retail, available for store management roles. and the majority work part time. Flexibility in working hours is for managers helped to facilitate the new approach, one of the most important reasons cited for choosing to work and role models have been championed through internal in retail. However, much talent is wasted because retail staff communications channels. who need to work flexibly or part time are trapped in junior jobs: they cannot take their flexibility with them from frontline roles to store management. Five-stage process for implementing flexible job redesign in retail management roles Through the pilot, Timewise developed a guide for retailers The Timewise model for change interested in using flexible working as a means to improving Working with some of the UK’s foremost employers to improve talent retention and progression: talent attraction, retention, and progression, Timewise has learned that successful flexible working results from three key 1. Establish a business case tenets: 2. Explore your current capacity to drive change Culture change needs to be driven by the leadership team 3. Identify which job design options will support your business Job design must routinely consider flexible working 4. Set up a pilot and measure its impact possibilities 5. Roll out the changes and continue to measure the benefits Organisations need to communicate successes in flexible working. Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 5

THE BUSINESS CASE: HOW FLEXIBLE WORKING HELPS TO RETAIN AND PROGRESS TALENT

Flexibility in working hours is one of the most important reasons 65% of frontline retail employees would take a job for which they cited for choosing to work in retail. In fact, apart from ‘working were overqualified, if it offered flexibility in hours. Yet over half of near where I live’, it’s the most important. And flexibility is not part time workers in retail are interested in career progression only valued by working mums and carers: students working in and would accept promotion if they could take their part time retail put flexibility as the number one attraction.2 and flexible arrangements with them.5 Redesigning senior jobs to enable flexibility is therefore vital if the sector is to retain and Staff is harmful to organisations when the wrong people progress the best talent, and maximise productivity.6 are leaving. Estimates of the cost of replacing an employee vary, but for retail staff who earn more than £25,000 (just over half the retail workforce), the cost of replacement is £20,000. This includes not just the direct costs but also the INNOVATIVE PRACTICE (often forgotten) cost of getting the new employee up to optimal IN AMERICA 3 productivity. In the USA, work redesign initiatives in retail7 have shown a positive link between flexibility and reduced 1.5 million people currently work in low-paid roles in retail, and voluntary turnover. The US technology products retailer Best Buy the majority work part time. However, moving up to store and (1400 stores and 125,000 employees) trialled giving employees flexibility over working time and measured productivity in the trial general management is harder for those who need flexibility: teams. Voluntary turnover rates reduced by 90% and productivity 56% of retail employees believe they are less likely to get increased by 41%. People were happier and healthier too and more promoted if they work part time.4 This ‘flexibility trap’ means motivated to stay. that talent is locked into lower grades. Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 6

RETAINING AND PROGRESSING WOMEN

Gender diversity is not just about corporate responsibility or employer brand. Gender-diverse companies are 15% more likely to achieve financial returns above their industry average. In the UK, for every 10% increase in gender diversity on the senior executive team, financial performance has been shown to rise by 3.5%.8 “Diversity in the team leads to a better discussion with greater Employing women in senior, decision-making roles is particularly understanding before reaching important in retail because 85% of all retail purchases are made or influenced by women. Yet only 20% of executive teams are a conclusion. I definitely see a women, and only 10% of executive boards – despite the fact correlation between business that women dominate frontline and junior management roles in performance and diversity.” retail. The lack of part time and flexible working locks women out 10 of senior jobs: women are more likely to be overqualified and Sir Charlie Mayfield, Chairman, John Lewis Partnership underemployed in their jobs.9

“The retail industry needs people who visit stores and understand customers and that’s why I think the gender mix on executive boards should be at least equal.” George Davies, Founder, Next11

INNOVATIVE PRACTICE IN AUSTRALIA

Telecoms giant Telstra Australia piloted “All Roles Flex” in its retail environments before rolling out company wide. A three-month pilot offered employees and external candidates working time flexibility from day one at frontline and manager level. 30% of candidates said they applied for the role because of openness about flexibility and applications from women increased. Nearly a third were hired or promoted on a flexible basis.12 Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 7

MYTHS ABOUT THE RETAIL WORKFORCE

Myth: Part time workers don’t Myth: Senior jobs can’t be done want promotion. on a part time basis. Fact: Over half of part time Fact: One in ten UK managers workers in retail would accept works part time.14 Reduced promotion if they could take their working hours do not necessarily part time arrangements with signal reduced commitment to them.13 career progression.

Myth: Women don’t want senior jobs in retail. Myth: Millennials want to work Fact: Six of 45 new retail CEO long hours to build their careers. appointments were women in Fact: Millennial workers place 2015.15 very high value on work-life balance: 75% of them want the ability to work flexibly and progress their careers.16 And half of millennial dads (under 35) would take a pay cut to spend more time with their family.17 Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 8

THE TIMEWISE MODEL FOR CHANGE

Timewise is the leading change agent for flexible resourcing 2. Build capabilities in flexible job design in the UK. We have worked with some of the UK’s foremost – at every opportunity employers to implement flexible working as an aid to talent Traditionally, a lack of skills or ambition has been seen as the attraction, retention, and progression. Three key things we have reason for poor progression among part time workers. Timewise learnt: research and experience suggests instead that job design is the 1. Leadership drives culture change key. We ask employers to rethink the default design of frontline and managerial jobs and to create jobs which meet both organisational Some cultures are more receptive, informed and open-minded and individual needs. This means managers need to think about about employee flexibility than others – and the tone is set when, where and how much the job-holder works – and to focus from the top. Flexible working needs to be owned not just by on outputs, not hours. Nine out of ten hiring managers in the UK HR but by directors and senior managers, who should develop are open to employing flexible workers, but three quarters have the business case, cascade the organisational change, and role not had any training in how to manage flexible working.18 model the change they want to see.

Misconceptions about flexibility JOB DESIGN IDENTIFIES WHERE • Flexible working is reserved for valued employees FLEXIBILITY WORKS • Always means part time hours • Is only for mums • Puts a burden on the full time team • Is unfair to those who don’t have it ORGANISATION’S INDIVIDUAL’S NEEDS NEEDS • Complicates rota planning • Is a permanent change we can’t review • Removes flexibility from the business

Opening up to flexibility 3. Communicate positively about flexibility • Boosts productivity Organisations need a clear and compelling story about why • Lifts engagement flexible working matters to their business – and then they need • Is open to all to use multiple communication tools and channels to raise • Means different things to different people awareness and normalise flexible working, both internally and at the point of hire. • Looks different in different jobs • Means designing jobs that suit the needs of the employer Case studies of senior leaders working flexibly are one of the and the individual most powerful signifiers of intention to change. Timewise runs • Can help us think in outcomes not just hours the Power Part Time list every year, providing an opportunity for • Is an opportunity employers to showcase people doing senior jobs on a part time basis. It’s important to highlight both men and women who work flexibly for a variety of different reasons. Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 9

CASE STUDY: PETS AT HOME

“We are proud of the great engagement our colleagues give our business and we know how important it is to our success. Pets at Home, the UK’s largest pets retailer, employs over 8,000 store-based colleagues of whom 65% are women. The company But we know from our survey that is growing fast and is a highly regarded brand, having won many work-life balance for our managers awards as an employer of choice. was becoming an issue, and for Pets at Home wanted to understand why their attrition rates us ultimately, that is what this is for women were high. Timewise invited the views of groups of all about, making a difference to female frontline colleagues, store and general managers, and our colleagues’ work-life balance… promotion candidates at different job levels. We found that, while many women do stay and move within the company, the ratio There are total synergies with our of men moving off the shop floor into assistant manager roles actions on flexible working and our was double that of women. The lack of flexibility in management work in promoting women in the roles was a major contributing factor. Two thirds of colleagues consulted agreed that more would be interested in promotion if workplace.” they knew they could work part time or flexible shifts. Kate Williams, People and Engagement Manager, Pets at Home Through data mapping, surveys and listening groups, and analysis of operational practices, Timewise helped Pets at Home to identify the challenges and opportunities within the business. The board made a commitment in the business plan to tackle A strategic decision was made to make two flexible job designs gender diversity (and help meet their reporting available in store management jobs from day one: obligations) through job redesign, and set up a steering group with senior representatives from operations and HR to run the Jobshare partnerships, with each partner working a minimum change process. of three days a week A series of workshops with HR and operational teams identified Part time, with the job holder working a minimum of four days operational constraints and management capability. Jobshare a week and part time were identified as the options which met business needs while also appealing to frontline candidates for promotion. Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 10

To facilitate the organisation-wide culture change needed to underpin this change, Pets at Home has provided training to “By offering more flexibility in managers to identify and recruit colleagues into the new roles, our approach to management and to facilitate this new approach to work within teams in stores. The company also adjusted its flexible working policy and recruitment and development we created guidance to managers and staff to make explicit that aim to create further opportunities conversations about individual flexibility needs were welcome at for talented female colleagues to any point. achieve their full potential while Management roles are now advertised with flexible options and balancing their working life and role models are highlighted through internal communications home commitments.” channels. For example, in a large and busy store, Pets at Home Vicky Hill, Head of People, Pets at Home has supported a jobshare between two store managers who say, “We work alternate days and share responsibility for managing the store… We’re different personalities and have different ways of doing things but the combination works brilliantly… Our store Guidance for jobsharers results have been excellent and our team are a happy bunch.” • Work out how the responsibilities will be shared and the tasks divided. For example, rota planning might happen on a Monday and team meetings on a Friday, and unless these routines can be changed, the tasks will fall to the manager in work on those days. • Decide how working days and shifts are split between “Our job share partnership works really well. the jobsharers, and whether these patterns are fixed or variable, for example monthly or quarterly. We complement and trust each other, and • Jobshare partners don’t necessarily need to know it means we can bring a great mix of skills each other before they start working together if the to Pets at Home, whilst also balancing our arrangement is designed well, and it is clear that they are career with family life. We would definitely jointly responsible for hitting performance targets and managing their teams. recommend this way of working, both for • Handovers are critical and jobsharers must have good women who want to progress their careers communication skills – both between each other, and in retail and companies who want to keep with their teams. great talent.” • The manager of the jobshare partnership needs to be Juliet Botur and Emma Harris, Job-share Store Managers, Rawtenstall clear about how to manage performance. Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 11

THE CHANGE PROCESS: ACHIEVING FLEXIBILITY IN RETAIL

Following our pilot with Pets at Home, Timewise has developed a five-stage process for the implementation of flexible job redesign How to in retail management roles. 5 make the changes and Setting measure the 4 up a benefits pilot – and measuring its impact Which job 3 design options do you want to encourage?

Your 2 current capacity to drive change

Your 1 business case Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 12

1 STEP 1: YOUR BUSINESS CASE

The first step is to understand why enabling talent progression retention rates in the years after return from maternity leave? through flexible working is good for your business, and the What kinds of flexibility do employees want? Understanding difference you expect to see by taking action. latent, unexpressed demand for flexible working is difficult to do in surveys, especially in cultures where flexibility is Retailers set the gold standard in understanding customer regarded as unsuitable for senior roles: confidential focus segmentation and listening to customers. Applying the same groups and interviews can give a more accurate picture. tools and techniques to understanding your employee segments will help you detect patterns in their needs and attitudes towards moving up and towards different types of flexibility. You may have A differentiated picture of demand is what you need in order to some relevant information from exit interviews or staff surveys, or design a differentiated and inclusive range of opportunities. For you may need to collect new information through specific surveys example BRC’s research segmented frontline retail workers by or focus groups. You should do enough data analysis and research age, gender and credits. Timewise surveyed frontline to get a handle on: colleagues at Pets at Home and segmented people by age, gender, and caring responsibilities. Which demographic groups tend to get promoted, stay longest in role, and leave? Is there a difference between men and Once you have this differentiated picture of demand, you need to women? Younger and older employees? Parents and carers? consider two more issues: Part timers and full timers? Flexible or non-flexible workers? 1. What’s the cost of doing nothing on flexible working? Can What is the distribution of part time and flexible working at you quantify the cost of attrition and lost engagement or each job level and type? Does it vary by age, gender or caring productivity due to lack of flexible working? Do you have the profile? information you need to fulfil statutory obligations on gender Which demographic groups express most and least pay gap reporting? satisfaction with their jobs, their opportunities and their 2. How does taking action on flexible working and progression working arrangements? fit with your strategic priorities? Which other organisational Who asks for flexible working? Which requests get approved initiatives might provide synergies? Are there any which might and rejected? Does the reason for the request matter? conflict? And what are your rates of return from maternity leave, and Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 13

2 STEP 2: YOUR CURRENT CAPACITY TO DRIVE CHANGE

Step 2 turns to your operating culture and capability to design How ready are your operational managers? flexible working at different job levels and open up progression What are operational managers’ attitudes towards flexibility and pathways between them. It’s about understanding your own progression on part time and flexible hours? What can they tell structure, processes and culture. you about what’s feasible – and how much do they need to be The strategic question is: how good are you at making flexibility challenged to think differently? work in management roles – and how good do you want to Store managers know which times of the day/week are slow be? Answering it involves taking a critical look at how your and which are busy, and which tasks and times they find hard business structures, processes and culture facilitate or constrain to resource. Opening and closing times, lean staffing and opportunities for people to progress on part time and flexible contracted hours targets, long-range succession planning, and hours. And how ready your managers are to make the change. localised rota planning, are likely to be raised as operational constraints. Managers may also raise concerns about their own Flexible working in management roles: where are confidence or capability in designing flexible jobs, dealing with you on the Timewise Flexibility Maturity Curve? legal rights, maintaining fairness, or placing additional burdens on colleagues. We proactively encourage it These concerns and constraints can be an opportunity: involving We openly support it 5. managers in solving operational, capability and cultural issues 4. leads to well-designed solutions that are more readily owned, We welcome it, but still reactively 3. championed and accepted.

We accommodate it, but only when someone asks 2.

We tolerate it, reluctantly 1.

Which systems and processes might need to change? Some operating models are more conducive to flexible working than others. For example, if you use headcount to measure a store’s efficiency or productivity, managers will be reluctant to employ people on a part time or jobshare basis. If you have rigid rules about which grades of staff are allowed to perform particular tasks, such as cashing up or being a key holder, you reduce the options for flexible hours. If your store managers don’t have the skills or scheduling tools to manage variants to the standard rota, they are unlikely to welcome requests for part time or flexible hours. If you have an hours-based or time- served approach to performance management and promotion, managers will find it hard to treat part time or flexible workers fairly. And if your talent development programmes require off-site overnight stays, how can you facilitate the participation of part time workers with family or other commitments? Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 14

3 STEP 3: WHICH JOB DESIGN OPTIONS DO YOU WANT TO ENCOURAGE?

Once you have understood your staff needs and operational constraints, and decided where you want to get to, you are ready to identify which job design options are most appropriate. There are plenty of job design options to consider in retail management.

You need to ask: WHERE does the job-holder need to work? Opportunities for remote or mobile working may be limited in store management roles, but dual-store contracts may mean that a store manager isn’t always based in the same place as their team. How often does a store manager need to be physically present? Can they do some of their job remotely as long as they’re contactable by phone? WHEN does the job-holder need to work? Extended opening hours mean that even full time managers are not available to their team all the time: a full time store manager may have a 40-hour contract, but stores will open for many more than 40 hours each week. What does the team do when the store manager isn’t at work? Can decisions or advice be delegated to assistant managers, or to managers in adjacent stores, or to ‘on-call’ managers elsewhere? How much flexibility is there in when the store manager needs to be at work? HOW MUCH does the job-holder need to work? How is the workload for a full time manager calculated? Which tasks could be delegated upwards, downwards or sideways to enable a talented person to take on a managerial role with a reduced workload? As managers progress up the hierarchy, the amount of workload is less related to the number of hours worked: an experienced manager can make decisions and answer questions in less time than an inexperienced one. If there is nobody else to delegate part of the workload to, consider asking two managers to jobshare a single role: this doesn’t have to be 2 x 20-hour contracts, but could be, for example, one three-day contract and one four-day contract in a store that opens seven days a week.

The specific job designs that you choose will be linked to the scale of your ambition and the scale of structural, process and cultural change that you can support either in one go, as a trial, or phased over time. Flexible job redesign often means thinking at a team level and considering collaborative working practices. Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 15 4 STEP 4: SETTING UP A PILOT AND MEASURING ITS IMPACT

It can be challenging to justify wholesale structural change while maintaining business as usual. You will be aware of how receptive your management is to change, but you also need to distinguish between real operational challenges and outdated attitudes. If you have identified the potential for real business benefits, you may need to challenge managers’ perceptions of what’s possible.

Designing a pilot project is a good place to start

You could trial your ideas in one store, area, division or job family, and measure what happens to productivity, engagement, progression, and applications. Within a trial it should be possible to relax any constraining features of the operating model, and rethink how work is organised at a team level. It’s often a good idea to build on a region or business area where you have existing good practice or role models. Depending on your ambition and the content of your initiative, a trial could run for three months to a year.

Whatever you trial, make sure you track the costs and outcomes of what you change. Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 16 5 STEP 5: HOW TO MAKE THE CHANGES AND MAXIMISE THE BENEFITS

This step is about implementing your changes. Good change Communicate! management skills are essential and communication is key. We Use multiple communication channels to raise awareness, advocate moving forward step by step, rather than adopting an itemise the benefits and reiterate the organisation’s commitment all or nothing approach. to change. Tell stories, publicise internal case studies and provide FAQs. Build on existing success It’s likely that some of your teams have already bought into the Upskill your managers business case and are putting flexible working into action. It This could be done informally through champions, mentors helps to identify and celebrate these successes internally, and or buddies – or formally through existing or new training then see how you can replicate them in other departments or programmes. Provide guidance to store and line managers (who regions. are usually the first recipients of employee flexibility requests) about flexible job design and which options work best for Be proactive the business. Improving awareness, confidence and skills in Leading flexible employers don’t just wait for an employee to ask. managing flexibility normalises different ways of working. They actively create opportunities for rethinking job design - for example at the point of hire or promotion, during organisational Measure and review restructures or annual budget planning, or on return from How will you know it’s working? Be clear about your outcome parental or . Add a line to all advertised vacancies measures, which might include: that you will consider flexible working options, and mean it! For Individual and team productivity measures example, Pets at Home job adverts for store managers now state Profile of promotion candidates by gender, different “We are happy to discuss the opportunity to work flexibly”. flexibilities Create change agents Job application and conversion rates by gender, different Consider training up ambassadors – either staff who already flexibilities work flexibly or operational leads in different divisions. Or you Promotion rates could set up a dedicated change team to own and drive the Staff engagement scores initiative, drawing on a range of expertise, e.g. operations, HR, communications, employee forums and representatives. Staff attrition/turnover Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 17

CONCLUSION

The British Retail Consortium has recognised that moving up whilst maintaining flexibility is a vital part of what will make the sector a great place to work in 2020.19 Flexible working can help retail employers to improve diversity at all seniority levels, so that management teams better reflect their customers.

This report has explained how retailers can create part time and flexible jobs in store and general management – and maximise the productivity of employees who would otherwise be locked into junior roles.

Flexible working is a significant part of what will make retail jobs better jobs. A job design approach matches the needs of the employer and employee. It invites employers to adjust structures, processes, and mindsets in order to benefit from access to the widest possible pool of talent.

A genuinely differentiated approach to enabling progression across different employee groups in different jobs demands an informed and agile response from retail employers. These practical hints and suggestions from retailers will help you on your journey. Good luck!

REFERENCES AND RESOURCES 9. Gender and Skills in a Changing Economy, Schuller, UK Commission for and Skills (2011) 1. Productivity and Pay: the Fabian Society’s retail industry taskforce 10. The Commercial Advantage of More Women in the Boardroom, Women in Retail (2016) 2. Location and being able to work close to home is the number 1 reason, flexibility number 2. Pay is number 6. 11. Speaking on Radio 4’s You and Yours Programme (2016) Retail 2020: What our people think, The British Retail 12. https://careers.telstra.com/Why-Work-Here#page=/ Consortium (2016) Why-Work-Here/Flexibility-and-Choice/ALL-ROLES-FLEX- 3. The Cost of Brain Drain, Oxford Economics (2014) %e2%80%93-CASE-STUDY&filter=* 4. 56% of frontline retail employees think promotion is less 13. BRC Key Facts About Retail likely to happen for part-time workers. BRC ibid 14. Eurostat Full-time and part-time employment by sex, age 5. 53% of part-time retail employees would accept promotion and occupation (2013) if they could. BRC ibid 15. Women in Retail ibid 6. Fabian Society ibid 16. Work-life challenges across generations , EY (2015) 7. Does Enhancing Work-Time Control and Flexibility Reduce 17. Modern Families Index, Working Families (2016) Turnover?, Society for the Study of Social Problems (2011) 18. A Flexible Future for Britain, Timewise (2014) 8. Why Diversity Matters, McKinsey & Co (2015) 19. Retail 2020: The Journey To Better Jobs, British Retail Consortium (2016) Moving up in retail: An employer’s guide to enabling talent progression through flexible working 18

ABOUT TIMEWISE

Timewise is a multi-award winning social business and leading change agent for the flexible recruitment market in the UK. Led by founders Karen Mattison MBE and Emma Stewart MBE, Timewise undertakes a range of activities to articulate the business benefits of quality part time and flexible work and provides a range of advisory and recruitment services for employers.

Employers who have partnered with us include:

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This report was authored by Dr Charlotte Gascoigne, Director of Research and Consultancy at Timewise, and Zoe Young, Timewise Associate and Director of Half the Sky Research & Consultancy. Timewise would like to thank Kate Williams and Vicky Hill from Pets at Home for their considerable input into this project. We would also like to thank Kitty Ussher and Monique Rotik of Tooley Street Research for their analysis, and Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive, British Retail Consortium and colleagues for their advice and support.

T: 0207 633 4559 E: [email protected]

Timewise is a division of Timewise Foundation C.I.C., a limited company registered in England and Wales. Company number: 5274371